Three's company approach a smart move

David HaughCHICAGO TRIBUNE

Lost in the hubbub over right defensive end Alex Brown complaining about losing his starting job to Mark Anderson have been two key points.

*Brown has every right to be upset about being demoted after the best season of his career and the fair thing for Bears coach Lovie Smith to do would have been to let him report to camp still a part of the No. 1 defense.

*It just doesn't matter because fairness and the NFL go together like class and Barry Bonds.

But in the bigger picture, Smith's most curious decision of the off-season still could turn into a pretty shrewd one if the trends of the first two weeks of training camp continue.

General manager Jerry Angelo would be unwise to trade Brown now, as Brown's agent has requested, no matter how many curious teams have called the Bears about the defensive end. The trio of Brown, Anderson and veteran Adewale Ogunleye at their current level of play might give the Bears the best combination of edge rushers in the league, and pass pressure from the perimeter is the lifeblood of every Cover 2 defense.

Even dangling Ogunleye, who has a fatter contract but returned trimmed down enough to have Smith hope he was getting back "the Wale who was an All-Pro," makes no football sense for a Bears team thinking Super Bowl. They need all three healthy but not necessarily happy.

Bliss is overrated for defensive players. Anger is fuel. Putting Brown in a bad mood might end up being a good career move for a guy who has started 64 straight games and was a Pro Bowl alternate.

Nobody has held up a sign to "Play Angry," as a fan did before the Super Bowl but Brown has responded to his demotion like a professional trying to prove his coach wrong. He looks as quick as ever and stout against the run, and he hasn't taken any of his obvious animosity into the huddle. Effort and attitude have been the loudest statements of any Brown has made this camp.

"On the field, we're still cool," Anderson said. "Alex doesn't really say anything about not wanting to be here, it's all friendship. I really don't feel awkward from that standpoint. It's all love."

For his part, Anderson loves the added pressure of being expected to repeat a remarkable rookie season in which he had 12 sacks. He embraces comparisons created by trivia such as the only four guys in NFL history to record more sacks during their rookie seasons were Jevon Kearse, Dwight Freeney, Leslie O'Neal and Simeon Rice -- elite pass rushers of the past 20 years.

Every sack artist needs a swagger and Anderson's has been more evident since the first day of camp when someone asked him if he had a sack goal this season.

"What's the record again? Twenty-two?" Anderson answered, knowing he was right.

He sounded just as bold discussing the possibility of the San Diego Chargers running right at him in the season opener Sept. 9 to test his ability to stop the run -- a part of his game some still question.

"If they want to run at me they can do that," Anderson said. "I have 10 other guys ready to back me up."

Anderson must be listening to his coaches, who have grown somewhat defensive at the suggestion that becoming an every-down defensive end will expose a weakness in the former fifth-round draft pick. They disagree that increasing Anderson's snaps on first and second downs -- when teams typically run the ball more -- risks decreasing his effectiveness on third downs.

They don't buy the notion Anderson has to be either a dominant pass rusher or an effective run-stopper; they believe he is both, and a special player.

"Against the run, he has not been a liability," defensive coordinator Bob Babich said. "If you're going to play on first and second downs like he did, you have to be able to stop the run."

The return of Mike Brown and the addition of Adam Archuleta will help hide any flaws Anderson may have because both safeties are among the NFL's toughest in run support. But, face it, as touchy as the Bears are about Anderson's ability to stop the run he became impossible to keep off the field in their minds because of the way he gets to the quarterback.

In a defense predicated on upfield quickness, the Bears value rushing the passer more than stopping the run anyway and Anderson spent the off-season refining his pass-rushing technique with Ogunleye and Giants defensive end Osi Umenyiora. Babich noted "a new inventory of moves," a good sign Anderson didn't spend the last six months calculating future earnings.

His agent and the Bears can worry about that, perhaps as early as next winter. A bargain set to make $360,000 this year who received a modest $156,000 bonus when he signed, Anderson could move up on Angelo's agenda with another double-digit sack season.

Consider Anderson had twice as many sacks last year as Freeney, who just became the NFL's highest-paid defensive player with a $72 million contract, $30 million guaranteed. Everybody talks about the small fortune the Bears will have to pay defensive tackle Tommie Harris but Anderson could join the same tax bracket if he makes the impact coaches expect.

"In time, I will be a No. 1 defensive end, a top defensive end stopping the run and sacking the quarterback," Anderson said. "A complete player."

You know, like the Bears' other two defensive ends Anderson has overshadowed so far this camp.